The ceremony is on the Verde Valley Campus in Clarkdale and will be live-streamed on the College’s YouTube channel using the hashtag #YCGradJoy. College selected Republic legislator from District one as commencement keynote speaker

Yavapai Community College will hold  Commencement ceremonies May 4, 2024 at 10:00 a.m. on the Verde Valley campus in Clarkdale. The ceremony will be live-streamed on the Community College’s YouTube channel. Use the hashtag #YCGradJoy to view the event.

Approximately 85 graduates are expected to attend this event. These are students who either completed their degree or certificate in Fall 2023, or are expected to complete in Spring 2024 or Summer 2024.

The Community College reported that overall, 418 students completed nearly 500 degrees and certificates last fall, and 655 Community College students are currently on track to complete degrees and certificates this Spring.

The keynote speaker is Republican Representative Quang Nguyen, a staunch conservative.  He is serving his second term in the Arizona Legislator for Legislative District one and lives in Prescott Valley. In March of this year, he called on the Pima County Board of Supervisors to repeal an Ordinance that imposed a requirement that gun owners report the “knowing loss or theft of a firearm.” He also voted with the Republicans on April 18, 2024, who refused to repeal at that time an 1864 law that provided an almost total ban on abortion in Arizona.

The faculty speaker is Dr. Andrew M. Winters. Dr. Winter is Professor of Philosophy, Humanities Chair, and Co-President of the Faculty Senate at Yavapai Community College. He has taught courses in Humanities, Philosophy, and Religious Studies at YC since 2018.

The student speaker is Taidyme Mae. The College reports that Ms. Mae began taking classes at Yavapai Community College in 2016, while she was still in high school. She was accepted into the Community College’s Nursing Program in 2022, and she has been President of the Community College’s Student Nurses Association for the last three semester. After graduating with an Associate of Applied Science in Nursing, she plans to complete her Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree, also at Yavapai Community College! While working toward her bachelor’s degree, she hopes to be employed as an Registered nurse in one of the area hospital emergency departments. She has played softball since the age of nine and enjoys attending concerts and hiking. in the area. Taidyme lives in Prescott Valley with her dog, Koda, and her sulcata tortoise, Tiny.

The College encourages students and parents to use the hashtag #YCGradJoy on social media to share with their family and friends. Live streaming of the ceremonies will be available at yc.edu.